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Talk and signing with Katti Stoller, local veterinarian and author of the memoir, FOR THE LOVE OF DOG. Also, special canine guests!
Girl meets dog. Dog captures girl's heart. Girl starts veterinary school. Dog begins an eight-year battle with a rare genetic disease that teaches girl more about veterinary medicine than any textbook ever could.
For the Love of Dog chronicles the friendship between Katti Strahsmeier-Stoller and her best friend Cooper, an unforgettable English Foxhound. While Katti trains to become a veterinarian, Cooper's triumphant spirit carries him through the tough hand life has dealt him.
A long struggle with his health, a tendency to follow his nose until he finds himself lost in the next zip code, an incident where an airline misplaces him in their supply closet for sixteen hours, a mischievous streak that sees him wolf down an entire Mother's Day brunch in one sitting-Cooper outlasts every setback with an inspiring amount of joy. Through it all, Katti does everything in her power to ensure a high quality of life for Cooper, culminating in those final moments when she performs CPR in an effort to save his life.
Katti Stoller knew she wanted to be a vet from the time she was seven years old. Some of her earliest memories are of helping her dad take care of the beagles he bred and raised. The dream became a reality by way of bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Virginia Tech University and her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Ross University on the island of St. Kitts.
She spent the first years of her career at Sandwich Animal Hospital on Cape Cod before moving on to work in emergency veterinary medicine in her hometown of Pittsburgh, PA. Later, while contributing her time to the Humane Society, she began building a private practice with her husband Sam.
BelaCoop Animal Hospital of North Park opened in July 2013. The name honors Sam’s dog Bela and Katti’s dog Cooper. The practice opened with only three employees but has grown to twenty employees and two other doctors. A grooming facility, BelaCoop Beauty Bar, opened in March 2019, with plans for a boarding facility called BelaCoop Bed and Biscuit to open in 2021.
Katti and Sam have two children, Siena and Rainer; two rescue dogs, Pepper and Zenny; and two rescue cats, Lia and Kittniss. When she’s not at BelaCoop, you can find Katti out walking her dogs and/or spending time with her family in Pittsburgh, PA.